2011/09/03: Guardian(UK): Charity president says aid groups are misleading the public on SomaliaMédecins Sans Frontières executive says charities must admit that much of the country can’t be helped The head of an international medical charity has called on aid agencies to stop presenting a misleading picture of the famine in Somalia and admit that helping the worst-affected people is almost impossible. The international president of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Dr Unni Karunakara, returned from Somalia last week and said that, even though there was chronic malnutrition and drought across east Africa, hardly any agencies were able to work inside war-torn Somalia, where the picture was “profoundly distressing”. He condemned other organisations and the media for “glossing over” the reality in order to convince people that simply giving money for food was the answer.

2011/08/30: CBC: First Nations leaders join Keystone pipeline protestIndigenous people from across North America are joining the White House protest against TransCanada’s proposed Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry crude oil from northern Alberta to Gulf Coast refineries in Texas. Several First Nations leaders from Canada are making the trip to join the protest Sept. 2. Protesters have gathered outside the White House in Washington, D.C. since Aug. 20, with actors and scientists among those opposing the pipeline. Over 250 people have been arrested, including Canadian actors Margot Kidder and Fort McMurray, Alta.,-born Tantoo Cardinal.

2011/09/02: BBC: Journal editor resigns over ‘problematic’ climate paperThe editor of a science journal has resigned after admitting that a recent paper casting doubt on man-made climate change should not have been published. The paper, by US scientists Roy Spencer and William Braswell, claimed that computer models of climate inflated projections of temperature increase. It was seized on by “sceptic” bloggers, but attacked by mainstream scientists. Wolfgang Wagner, editor of Remote Sensing journal, says he agrees with their criticisms and is stepping down.

2011/09/02: PostMedia: Conservatives lacked ‘bold measures’ to improve economy: U.S. diplomatic cablePrime Minister Stephen Harper’s top priority last year was to stay in power while touting his economic stewardship, looking for a “graceful exit” from Afghanistan and avoiding any “sexy initiatives” on climate change, diplomats at the U.S. Embassy in Canada wrote in a newly released confidential cable. The uncensored cable, released through WikiLeaks, provides a remarkably candid assessment of how the embassy, under the direction of Ambassador David Jacobson, viewed the Canadian political scene at the start of 2010. It is written in blunt, sometimes chatty, language and does not shy away from analyzing the political tactics of the governing Tories and opposition parties. The cable was sent to Hillary Clinton’s U.S. State Department in Washington and to other U.S. embassies abroad.

It is evident that the Fukushima disaster is going to persist for some time. TEPCO says 6 to 9 months. The previous Japanese Prime Minister, Naoto Kan, said decades. We’ll see. At any rate this situation is not going to be resolved any time soon and deserves its own section.

2011/08/31: PlanetArk: U.N. Nuclear Safety Proposals Weakened: DiplomatsCountries with atomic power plants would be encouraged to host international safety review missions, under a draft U.N. action plan that may disappoint those who had hoped for strong measures to prevent a repeat of Japan’s nuclear crisis. Seeking the middle ground between states advocating more binding global rules and others wanting to keep safety as a strictly national responsibility, the U.N. nuclear agency appears to have gradually watered down its own proposals. The document from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the third draft presented to IAEA member states over the last few weeks, outlines a series of steps to help improve nuclear safety after the Fukushima accident almost six months ago. The latest version puts increased emphasis on the voluntary nature of the proposals, highlighting resistance among many countries against any move toward mandatory outside inspections of their nuclear energy installations.

2011/08/30: EurActiv: Oettinger: Fukushima throws lifeline to NabuccoThe nuclear disaster in Fukushima and subsequent scepticism vis-a-vis nuclear power has increased the chances of the up-and-down Nabucco pipeline project materialising in the future, the European Union’s energy commissioner has said. “Fukushima has basically increased the probability of Nabucco,” Günther Oettinger told reporters on the sidelines of the Handelsblatt renewable energy conference.

2011/09/01: ERW: Arctic wildfires may boost climate changeWildfires in the Arctic have been becoming more frequent in recent years. Now new research shows that these fires may be increasing the rate of global warming. Analysis of a burn scar from a large tundra fire reveals that large amounts of carbon were released.

2011/08/31: BBC: Bailiffs raid BP’s offices in MoscowBP has confirmed that bailiffs have raided its offices in Moscow. The company said their arrival was linked to a case in a regional court in Western Siberia relating to the collapse of BP’s Arctic oil exploration deal with Rosneft. The deal collapsed because of a legal challenge from its Russian partners in the joint venture TNK-BP. The deal has now been done with Exxon Mobil instead.

2011/08/30: BBC: Exxon Mobil clinches Arctic oil deal with RosneftUS oil major Exxon Mobil has clinched an Arctic oil exploration deal with Russian state-owned oil firm Rosneft. The venture seemingly extinguishes any remaining chance of BP reviving its own deal, which lapsed in May. The agreement was signed on Tuesday in the presence of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, a Rosneft spokesman said.

2011/08/28: G&M: Canada in danger of missing the boat in the ArcticStatements by France’s ambassador for the polar regions, Michel Rocard, that Canada appears to have given up on competing with Russia for Arctic commercial shipping traffic, should serve as a wake up call for Canadians. It may be that the country prefers the Northwest Passage as it is, a slightly-used backwater that best protects the fragile Arctic ecosystem and the traditional Inuit way of life. But if Canadians favour sustainable development in the north, and jobs for northerners, then they are in danger of missing the boat.

2011/08/29: ScienceInsider: Icebreaker Deal to Keep Antarctic Research AfloatAntarctic researchers funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) may need to throw on another blanket at night to ward off the chill. But Thursday’s agreement to lease a Russian icebreaker to help resupply NSF’s logistics hub at McMurdo Station should otherwise allow the agency to avoid any major curtailments to its Antarctic research schedule for the 2011-12 winter season.

2011/09/03: CNN: Tropical Storm Lee drenches Gulf states with rainFlooding forces some road closures in southern Louisiana – Officials shut the Port of Mobile in Alabama – A tropical storm warning is in effect from Destin, Florida, to Sabine Pass, Texas – Tropical Storm Lee could bring up to 20 inches of rain to parts of the Gulf

2011/09/04: BBC: Typhoon Talas kills at least 18 people in JapanAt least 18 people have been killed and more than 50 are missing after powerful Typhoon Talas ripped through western Japan, local media reports. The storm brought heavy rain and winds of up to 108km/h (68mph) after making landfall on Shikoku island on Saturday. Talas has now moved over Japan and into the Sea of Japan (East Sea), Japan’s Meteorological Agency said on Sunday. But it warned that heavy rains and strong winds will continue – raising the threat of floods and landslides.

2011/08/30: BBC: Irene floods: Vermont and New York await Fema helpRescue efforts are intensifying in flood-hit parts of the north-eastern US, as the death toll continues to rise two days after a fierce storm. Authorities have struggled to deliver supplies to Vermont and to New York towns isolated by washed-away roads. Tropical Storm Irene killed 40 people in the US and caused billions of dollars worth of damage.

2011/08/29: BBC: Irene: Vermont in flood as US counts storm costThe US east coast has begun clearing up after the devastation of tropical storm Irene, which killed at least 21 people. The storm is now soaking Canada’s north-east, while the north-eastern US is battling historic floods; five million US homes have lost power. In New York, which escaped a major disaster, transport resumed on Monday.

2011/09/01: WMO: El Niño/La Niña UpdateNeutral conditions have prevailed over the tropical Pacific, following the dissipation of the 2010-11 La Niña event by early May 2011. However, a few weak remnants of La Niña have persisted, particularly in some atmospheric features, and in recent weeks the surface as well as sub-surface waters in the eastern and central tropical Pacific Ocean have also cooled. Model forecasts and expert interpretation suggest persistence of near-neutral conditions or the re-emergence of La Niña conditions as the possible scenarios for the remainder of 2011. If a La Niña event does indeed occur, current indications are that it would be considerably weaker than the 2010-11 La Niña event. Development of El Niño, however, is considered very unlikely.

2011/08/29: BBC: Uganda landslides: Villagers killed in BulambuliAt least 24 people have died after torrential rains triggered landslides in eastern Uganda, Red Cross workers say. Residents fear 35 people may have been killed in Bulambuli district, but only 24 bodies have been recovered so far. The village of Namwidisi has reportedly been completely submerged in mud.

2011/08/28: BBC: Nigeria floods: At least 20 killed in IbadanAt least 20 people have been killed and thousands displaced by flooding in and around the city of Ibadan in south-western Nigeria. The floods, resulting from heavy rains that began on Friday, caused a dam to overflow and washed away numerous buildings and bridges.

2011/08/29: CBC: Futuristic ‘airships’ to be built for North — Yellowknife, British companies sign deal for aircraft that can land almost anywhereA British manufacturer will build a fleet of airships for Yellowknife’s Discovery Air to supply remote communities and enterprises in the North, the two companies say. The futuristic giant blimps from Hybrid Air Vehicles will cost $40 million each, Discovery Air Innovations, a Quebec-based subsidiary of Discovery Air, announced after signing its agreement with HAV. The aircraft use a mix of non-flammable helium and air power to fly and can land on almost any surface, HAV says on its website They’ll be able to carry up to 50 tonnes of cargo to mining camps and remote communities, HAV says. Stuart Russell, the vice-president of a Yellowknife mining logistics company, suggests northern transportation is a challenge just waiting for solutions.

2011/09/01: NatureNB: King’s brings back chemistryEight years after its shock exit, chemistry at King’s College London has made a surprise return. The university closed its chemistry department in 2003, a move that angered the UK’s chemistry community…

2011/09/03: UN: UN-backed climate change technology mechanism team concludes first meetingMembers of the technology executive committee created under the United Nations climate change convention to facilitate the use of technology to support mitigation and adaptation to climate change concluded their first meeting on Saturday, saying they had made important progress on issues discussed. Meeting in Bonn, members of the Technology Executive Committee (TEC), the policy arm of the convention’s Technology Mechanism, deliberated on how the TEC will provide technology needs, assess policy and technical issues related to technology development and transfer. The three-day meeting also discussed sharing information on new and innovative technologies, facilitating action on technology and ways to engage stakeholders to build the momentum on the Technology Mechanism.

2011/08/30: EurActiv: Romania suspended from Kyoto carbon tradingA UN panel has suspended Romania’s right to trade its surplus carbon emissions after it breached rules on emissions reporting, Bucharest’s environment ministry said on 28 August. The UNFCCC compliance committee, which had been meeting in Bonn for a week, found “irregularities” in Romania’s 2010 greenhouse gas emissions data, and ruled that its national emissions inventory had been inadequately kept. “Maybe tough measures will lead to more transparent information,” Natalia Yakymenko, an analyst with Point Carbon, told EurActiv from Kiev. “It’s hard to evaluate whether Romania’s projects have really generated anything.”

2011/08/29: PlanetArk: U.N. Bans Romania From Trading Its CO2 RightsA U.N. panel suspended Romania from trading its surplus carbon emission rights for breaching Kyoto Protocol rules on reporting emissions, the country’s environment ministry said on Sunday. The compliance committee of the UNFCCC was sitting in a week-long meeting in Bonn, Germany and decided to suspend Romania from trading assigned amount units (AAUs) after a preliminary hearing in July, when it found the country did not report its national emissions inventory properly.

2011/09/01: EurActiv: EU to push financial transactions tax at G20 summitThe European Union will push for the adoption of a financial transactions tax at a summit of the world’s 20 biggest economies, the G20, in November, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso said on Wednesday (31 August). G20 leaders are to meet in the southern French resort of Cannes in early November.

2011/08/31: HuffPo: The Dirtiest Fuel on the Planet by Al GoreThe leaders of the top environmental groups in the country, the Republican Governor of Nebraska, and millions of people around the country — including hundreds of people who have bravely participated in civil disobedience at the White House — all agree on one thing: President Obama should block a planned pipeline from the tar sands of Alberta to the Gulf of Mexico. The tar sands are the dirtiest source of fuel on the planet.

2011/08/29: NYT: Republicans Against Science[…]Now, we don’t know who will win next year’s presidential election. But the odds are that one of these years the world’s greatest nation will find itself ruled by a party that is aggressively anti-science, indeed anti-knowledge. And, in a time of severe challenges — environmental, economic, and more — that’s a terrifying prospect.

2011/09/02: CBC: Obama halts controversial smog standardsPresident Barack Obama is sacking a controversial proposed regulation tightening government smog standards, bowing to the demands of congressional Republicans and some business leaders. In a statement Friday, Obama said he had ordered Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lisa Jackson to withdraw the proposal, in part because of the importance of reducing regulatory burdens and uncertainty for businesses at a time of rampant uncertainty about an unsteady economy.

2011/08/28: TMoS: And If You Had Any Doubt the Radical Right Is Stark Raving MadHouse Republicans maintain that NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is a huge waste of money. In fact it’s such a huge waste of money they’re planning to force through cuts that would trim NOAA’s budget by 30%. The agency is warning the cuts will leave it effectively blind and will destroy its ability to give 5-10 days advance information of approaching hurricanes.

2011/08/30: BBC: Funding cuts leave science programme all at seaIn these cash-strapped times, it’s no surprise to see funding disappearing from science and environment projects – even those that have huge potential to alleviate hazards felt by many millions of people around the world. The latest likely casualty is one of the most enticing of all earth science collaborations – the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP). Bringing together the best scientists available, with funding supplied principally by Japan, the US and Europe, its remit is to facilitate research that involves drilling into the ocean floor, with a range of aims. Basic geology, past climate change, earthquake prediction, volcanoes, and life beneath the seabed are all in its portfolio.

2011/09/02: BBC: Australia PM Julia Gillard vows not to resignAustralian PM Julia Gillard has said she has no intention of stepping down amid reports of unrest in her governing Labor Party about her leadership. Ms Gillard suffered a major blow this week when the High Court ruled that an asylum deal with Malaysia was unlawful. She told Australian media: “I’m not going anywhere.”

2011/08/30: ABC(Au): Anti-carbon tax rally ‘misleading’The organiser of an anti-carbon tax forum in Bathurst says many residents do not trust the Federal Government’s figures. Gary Rush says about 130 people turned out last night to hear from the New South Wales Minerals Council, Federal Opposition, New South Wales Business Chamber and Australian Farm Institute. The forum has been criticised for being one-sided and not detailing the compensation available to households and businesses.

2011/08/30: ABC(Au): Snowy water release benefits ‘fabulous’A date has been set for the biggest environmental water releases into the Snowy River since the construction of the hydro-electric scheme. A total of 84,000 megalitres will be released over 19 days from Jindabyne Dam from October 6. Peak flows will hit 12,000 megalitres a day over three days.

2011/08/31: OpenDem: Frenzied argument in IndiaA high-decibel debate lasting several weeks in India has forced an agreement on introducing a draconian anti-corruption bill. Anna Hazare’s hunger strike with round-the-clock television coverage has divided the nation. Is there a third way between apathy and messianic fanaticism?

2011/09/02: PlanetArk: China Needs Absolute CO2 Cap To Meet Market Plans: ResearchersChina needs to set absolute restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions if it is to fulfill its aim to set up a carbon market over the next five years, a cabinet office think tank said in a paper published on Thursday. “It is only under an absolute emissions cap that carbon emission permits will become a scarce resource and possess the qualities of a commodity,” the State Council’s Development and Research Center said in a paper in Seeking Truth, a magazine published by the ruling Communist Party. China has traditionally baulked at the idea of emissions caps either on a regional basis or for industrial sectors, invoking a key Kyoto protocol principle that puts most of the burden of cutting greenhouse gases on developed countries. Beijing has pledged to reduce 2005 levels of carbon intensity — the amount of CO2 produced per unit of GDP growth — by 40-45 percent by 2020, but that is unlikely to be enough to kickstart a market, the researchers said. “China’s carbon emission intensity target is a relative amount and it must be converted to an absolute amount,” they said.

2011/08/29: al Jazeera: Indigenous activists gain momentum in BoliviaA 526km march brings attention to Evo Morales’ hypocritical stance on the environment and indigenous sovereignty. “We can’t understand that an indigenous government is violating our indigenous rights,” said Fernando Vargas, pulling together the complexity – and perplexity – of the government-supported construction of a new highway through an indigenous area and national park in Bolivia. Vargas is the current leader of the TIPNIS indigenous territory, through which the planned highway will be built, to the dismay of hundreds of indigenous people who are leading a 526km march as a show of opposition.

2011/09/02: PostMedia: Conservatives lacked ‘bold measures’ to improve economy: U.S. diplomatic cablePrime Minister Stephen Harper’s top priority last year was to stay in power while touting his economic stewardship, looking for a “graceful exit” from Afghanistan and avoiding any “sexy initiatives” on climate change, diplomats at the U.S. Embassy in Canada wrote in a newly released confidential cable. The uncensored cable, released through WikiLeaks, provides a remarkably candid assessment of how the embassy, under the direction of Ambassador David Jacobson, viewed the Canadian political scene at the start of 2010. It is written in blunt, sometimes chatty, language and does not shy away from analyzing the political tactics of the governing Tories and opposition parties. The cable was sent to Hillary Clinton’s U.S. State Department in Washington and to other U.S. embassies abroad.

2011/08/30: G&M: Power sector objects to proposed federal emission rulesThe federal government plans to regulate emissions on new natural-gas-fired power plants, posing a major challenge for an industry that is being forced to phase out traditional coal-fired plants. The electricity sector should expect to meet emission standards for new gas plants that will have to be built to replace coal-fired plants that reach the end of their commercial life after 2015, Environment Minister Peter Kent revealed in an interview on Tuesday.

2011/08/29: PostMedia: Canada highlight oilsands lobbying successThe federal government described media reports about weakened Europe climate-change policies as a “leap forward” on work to protect Alberta’s oilsands industry, internal documents obtained by Postmedia News have revealed. The information was included in a document summarizing a March 2010 meeting between government officials, oil and gas industry executives, and Bruce Carson, a former top adviser to Prime Minister Stephen Harper. It highlighted media reports about the European Union backing away from stringent environmental standards targeting oilsands crude in order “to avoid further damage to ties.” The proposed standards, known in Europe as the Fuel Quality Directive, and in other jurisdictions as a Low Carbon Fuel Standard or LCFS, would restrict imports or use of fuel that requires intensive energy use and results in higher greenhouse gas emissions and pollution, such as the oilsands.

2011/08/28: G&M: Canada in danger of missing the boat in the ArcticStatements by France’s ambassador for the polar regions, Michel Rocard, that Canada appears to have given up on competing with Russia for Arctic commercial shipping traffic, should serve as a wake up call for Canadians. It may be that the country prefers the Northwest Passage as it is, a slightly-used backwater that best protects the fragile Arctic ecosystem and the traditional Inuit way of life. But if Canadians favour sustainable development in the north, and jobs for northerners, then they are in danger of missing the boat.

2011/08/29: TStar: [Ontario] NDP losing its green alliesEnvironmentalists are seeing red over the fading green credentials of Ontario’s NDP. On the eve of a provincial election, these traditional allies are growing estranged. Prominent environmentalists are denouncing the NDP and publicly defending the Liberal government’s activist agenda on green energy.

2011/09/01: CBC: Cooler fall for Canada’s east, west coastsCanadians on the Pacific coast and in parts of Atlantic Canada may be in for a cooler than normal autumn, Environment Canada said Thursday as it unveiled its outlook for the next three months. For most of the rest of the country, temperatures may be above normal for September through November, according to the outlook. Precipitation levels for the period may also be below normal for the Prairies and Atlantic Canada but about normal everywhere else.

2011/08/30: Eureka: Novel alloy could produce hydrogen fuel from sunlightUsing advanced theoretical computations, a team of Kentucky scientists has derived a means to “tweak” an inexpensive semiconductor to function as photoelectrochemical catalyst. Scientists from the University of Kentucky and the University of Louisville have determined that an inexpensive semiconductor material can be “tweaked” to generate hydrogen from water using sunlight.

2011/08/29: CNN: Hurricane Irene damage could reach billionsHurricane Irene left 24 people dead, 3 million customers without power and potentially billions of dollars in damage from flooding and wind. But the economic damage could have been a lot worse, experts said. “It was much less bite than bark,” said Matt Carletti, specialty insurance analyst at JMP Securities. “Rounding up, it’s a $10 billion event, not 20 or 30 or 40.”

2011/08/29: ABC(Au): Climate change linked to mental health problemsA report out today draws a direct link between inaction on climate change and long-term social and mental health problems. The study by the Climate Institute, titled A Climate Of Suffering: The Real Cost Of Living With Inaction On Climate Change, points to increased depression, anxiety, substance abuse, suicide and self-harm in the wake of recent natural disasters in Australia. The report also warns continuing catastrophic weather events are creating anxiety and insecurity for children at levels not seen since the Cold War.

Autobahn Note:

In case you have been looking for my home page, it seems Autobahn member pages are permanently toast. I am in the process of arranging another web host. In the meanwhile, there is AFTIC only.

My first novel Water was published in Canada May, 2007. The American release was in October. An Introductionto the novel is available, along with the Unpublished Forewordand the Launch Talk(which includes some quotations), An overview of my writing is available here.

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people together to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.” -Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Comments

Why did he really quit? I know of no journal editor who has resigned over a published paper. Even if they found the paper to be full of errors, that has never been good enough reason to quit in the past. Journals publish bad science all the time, the editors don’t quit over it, so why did this guy really quit? I don’t believe this paper by Spencer was the real reason, this does not pass the sniff test. I’m sorry but there is something else going on here that we’re not hearing about. I’m not buying it, I smell a rat.

After seeing the critiques of the paper, Climate Research’s chief editor Hans von Storch sought to make changes to its review process. However, when other editors at the journal refused, von Storch decided to resign. He condemned the journal’s review process in his resignation letter: “The review process had utterly failed; important questions have not been asked … the methodological basis for such a conclusion (that the 20th century is probably not the warmest nor a uniquely extreme climate period of the last millennium) was simply not given.” Eventually half of the journal’s editorial board resigned along with von Storch. Von Storch later stated that climate change sceptics “had identified Climate Research as a journal where some editors were not as rigorous in the review process as is otherwise common”] and complained that he had been pressured to publish the paper and had not been allowed to publish a rebuttal contesting the authors’ conclusions.

It’s amazing how people with no integrity (ie deniers) are surprised when the other side (ie scientists) demonstrate that they don’t share the same contempt for ethical behaviour.

Its really simple klem. Scientists and journal editors have integrity, and when they do something wrong they admit their error and take the consequences – which they more often than not impose upon themselves.

On the other hand, deniers and liars make errors all the time. They never admit them, and they never make recompense when they are pointed out. They just deny, deny, deny, deny… then move on to the next lie.